As we move full speed into this election year, there are a number of topics that that should be at the top of every candidate’s agenda, and none more important than the fate of U.S. technology-based competitiveness.

In January, a team at Georgia Institute of Technology released the latest in a series of reports that since the late 1980s has tracked high-tech indicators in 33 countries (gatech.edu/newsroom/release.html?id=1682).

This project is supported and funded by the National Science Foundation, considered one of the key innovation-enabling U.S. agencies. It offers an interesting perspective on the technological competitiveness of the countries studied with a look toward future technology viability and leadership. Indicators included in the study were technology infrastructure, national orientation, production capacity and socioeconomic infrastructure.

The study is a mix of statistical data and expert opinion. From this, the authors generate a relative technology standing. Rather than providing an absolute number, the report tracks national shifts over time, presenting an assessment of which countries are best-positioned with regard to these leading indicators.

One of the key factors in the rankings was each country’s overall success at exporting high-tech products. This was judged based on the monetary value of these products, in particular the value of electronics exports. (It should be noted, the authors did not distinguish the corporate nationality of the manufacturing entities responsible for the exports and therefore treated the majority of exports as “owned” by the exporting nation.)

The study concluded that China had jumped into the lead in technology standing, ahead of the U.S., Germany and Japan. China has shown consistant gain in all categories over the past 15 years. The most notable gains came in the area of high-tech exports and a pervasive emphasis on science, engineering and R&D.

While one could argue that the exports credited to China are in many cases actually foreign-owned, infrastructure and other input indicators for China have certainly reaped the benefit of foreign investments over the past few years. Based on the rapid rise in input indicator scores, China is positioning itself to be a principal driver for the future world economy.

On the U.S. side, programs like the American Competitiveness Institute (aciusa.org) and other enterprises that support innovation should be at the heart of U.S. economic planning. R&D and investment tax credits for domestically located endeavors, funding for U.S. education at every level and funding to support inventions that benefit the environment will factor heavily into our future on the world stage.

The report’s findings should not come as a surprise. They do, however, provide us with another tool to chart our progress (be it growth or decline) in the coming years as we strive to develop new technologies that will support continued economic expansion. It’s time to take the long view, and invest in future viability instead of measuring success based on the fluctuations of quarterly profit and loss.

Changing gears, Virtual PCB, the online trade show hosted by UP Media Group in mid-February, was a huge success! More than 2,100 PCB designers, fabricators and assemblers registered for the live show, almost half from outside the U.S. For the uninitiated, Virtual PCB is a fully interactive Web-based event.

If you missed the live show, you can still visit the on-demand event for the next three months. Kelly Dack, a senior PCB designer with IGT (International Game Technology), echoed a common reaction when he said, “More PCB industry suppliers need to tap into Virtual PCB. It’s like a listserve on steroids! A virtual tradeshow, but it’s real-time and real interactive!”

Based on overwhelming consensus from exhibitors and attendees, another live event is planned for November 2008.

As companies like Cisco actively strive to reduce their carbon footprint, and time away from the office is at a premium, Virtual PCB will be at forefront of the coming buyer-seller experience. And you don’t need to take the long view to see that.  PCD&F